John Peter Deneka and Caroline Anna Ostrowski

Hello, I am looking for information with regard to my grand aunt and her husband. Caroline Anna Ostrowski was born 15 Aug 1883 in Belz, Poland (according to her death notice in the US paper) but could also be the small village Worochta, Sokal, Galicia, Austria. I found their immigration papers (1908) online and noted that they said they were married in "Germany". Her oldest son was born in 1904 in Poland, so I am thinking they were married in 1903.

John Peter Deneka was born 15 May 1879 in Hilcze, Chochliw, Poland (but could be April). His parents were Bartholomew Deneka and Rose Mishka (last name could be Canadian-ized).

I have searched the metrical books for Worochta, Budynin, and one other village whose name I cannot recall right now, and cannot find my grand aunt in any of those records. (There are a few entries in Polish and will have those translated shortly, as I did recognize the Polish spelling for Ostrowski). I have not yet searched the books for the Hilcze region for the Deneka name.

I am hoping someone on this forum will be able to help with regard to the marriage.

From the late 18th century to 1918 wies/village Worochta ( (ukr. Ворол│хта) was a hamlet size village. Sokal was the powiat/adm district and Belz was the gmina/judicial-tax district. The filial Greek Catholic Church was in Budynin and the filial Roman Catholic Church was in Machnowek. This was the historic Galicia Province administered by ethnic Poles for the Austro-Hungarian Empire. 1918-1938 this area came under Reconstituted Poland's domain. Technically Poland had not existed as a geopolitical entity for the previous 125+ yrs. Post WW2 Sokal district came under Soviet domain until 1992, when Ukraine became independent. ***

*** March 1945: Stalin had agreed to turn a chunk of SSR Ukraine to Communist Poland. Belz and the longstanding villages around it were conceded to Poland. The villages were Budynin, Vytkiv, Worochta, Wynnyky, Horodysche Waryazke, Hilche, Khokhliv, Dowzhniv, Zhnyatyn, Kostyashyn, Lisky, Livche, Mytsiv, Makhniwok, Oserediv, Perewodiv, Sulymiv, Tushkiv, Khlopyatyn, which had previously been devastated by the fighting between Poles and Ukrainians, now belonged to Poland. The Ukrainian villagers were forcefully removed from their homes and resettled in the Soviet Union. Many of these villages simply do not exist today.

These border areas are tough to research. Poland has had some philosophical differences and is not allowing LDS to film any more metrykal materials. Andriy Dorosh, member here, knows this area well, as his own family was displaced by these border changes. Consider hiring him to perform the archival research for you. He comes w/exc references and he does frequently travel to the archives in Poland. His rates are very fair and his work is impeccable. Dorosh Heritage Tours